Apply Design Thinking to Processes

After the CMS announcement in January of a major push towards value based care, we can expect private payers to follow this course aggressively as well. In our recent article Value for Independents, we suggest that rather than viewing value based as threat, this model can level the playing field for independent providers of care who are willing to re-think their business.

In excerpts from the article, Sense Corp offers up a few ideas for providers that not only want to survive, but thrive in the new value based world.

#2: Apply Design Thinking to Processes

As part of the evolution of Accountable Care from the primitive HMOs of the 80’s and 90’s, most contracts have a patient satisfaction component, with patients surveyed about their care experiences and the resulting scores used as part of the measurement criteria. In many cases, these ratings can have a direct impact on reimbursement. Additionally, social media provides a source of information for consumers of healthcare that will need to be managed as well. Facebook ratings have been found to be surprisingly correlated with some quality indicators. These may ultimately influence consumer preference, perhaps even more than established healthcare benchmarks.

Using the lessons from hospitality, retail, and other industries, provider organizations will need to consider various touchpoints with the patient, particularly introductions to your organization and most recent experiences prior to the survey being delivered to the patient. A proactive strategy in this regard can help manage patient issues before they become negative reviews.